Wrap advertising is the marketing practice of completely or partially covering (wrapping) a vehicle in an advertisement or livery, thus turning it into a mobile billboard. This can be achieved by simply painting the vehicle surface, but it is becoming more common today to use large vinyl sheets as decals. These can be removed with relative ease, making it much less expensive to change from one advertisement to another. Vehicles with large, flat surfaces, such as buses and light-rail carriages, are fairly easy to work with; smaller cars, structures, sides of buildings and the like with curved surfaces can also be wrapped in this manner, although with greater difficulty. To help with covering large or curved surfaces, a wrap is often divided into a number of smaller pieces. Vinyl wraps are also made to cover side and rear windows on a vehicle, though for obvious safety reasons the front windows used by the driver are not covered. The vinyl used on side windows is typically perforated so that it is still possible to look outside of the vehicle.
In the past, liquid and/or surfactants were utilized in combination with a rubber squeegee to aid in the installation of wraps and decals. However, the liquid also makes installing a graphic article a rather messy process. In addition, if the graphic article is applied to, for example, a plastic substrate to make a sign, the substrate retains moisture after the installation process is complete. This retained moisture requires air drying for an extended period, typically at least one day, before the sign may be rolled up, thermoformed, or otherwise used. The retained moisture may also increase outgassing from some polymeric materials commonly used in backlit signage applications such as, for example, polycarbonates. This outgassing may cause formation of bubbles beneath the graphic article. In addition, vinyl is often heated with a heat gun or torch to mold around objects which may also increase gas formation beneath the vinyl. Bubbles created between the vinyl and the substrate cause the sign to be less attractive to the viewer, and thus less attractive to the purchaser.
Recent advancements in vinyl development have led to new types of vinyls specifically for doing wraps, such as vinyls that feature air channels to reduce the formation of bubbles, and microscopic glass beads that prevent the adhesive from taking hold until a force sufficient to break the glass beads is applied to the surface of the vinyl. This feature allows the material to be lifted and reapplied as needed during the wrapping process, without stretching the vinyl wrap material out of the desired shape.
Even with the recent developments in the technology contained in the vinyl itself, the tools utilized by technicians for installation of the vinyl have remained virtually unchanged. Technicians typically utilize rubber and/or plastic squeegees and razor blades to complete the installations. Therefore, there is a need in the art for a hand operated application blade specifically constructed for use in applying vinyl wrap type materials to various substrates. The application tool should be suitable for use on curved as well as flat surfaces, and should be sufficiently lightweight, yet durable, to allow extended use by a technician.